Rob Lowe likened leaving The West Wing to breaking up with the most popular girl in school–but doesn’t regret it.
Rob Lowe literally did not like working on the Emmy Award-winning series The West Wing. But it wasn’t all the walking and talking that did him in; rather, it was the constant struggle of feeling “undervalued” as White House Communications Director and later Deputy Chief of Staff Sam Seaborn.
In an episode of podcast Podcrushed (via The A.V. Club) released on Wednesday, Rob Lowe likened his time on The West Wing (that is, one of the greatest shows ever) as being in an “unhealthy relationship”, citing that for one of the main reasons he departed with the season four episode “Red Haven’s on Fire.” “I did not have a good experience…Tried to make it work and tried to make it work and tried to make it work and then what happened was my kids were getting to a certain age where I could see them having first girlfriends or friends and being in a relationship that was abusive and taking it. She’s the popular girl, everybody likes her, she’s beautiful, it must be great. All the things that people would say about making The West Wing to me. It’s so popular, it’s so amazing, it must be amazing, but I know what it’s like and if I couldn’t walk away from it, then how could I empower my kids to walk away from it?” However, he knows he made the right decision with his departure, saying, “I walked away from the most popular girl at school…but I also knew that it was a super unhealthy relationship, and it was the best thing I ever did.” He would reappear during the show’s final season.
Despite being displeased with so much of The West Wing, the show would earn Rob Lowe the most acclaim of his career, earning Golden Globe, Emmy and Screen Actors Guild nominations, with two wins from SAG as part of the ensemble. He would also join his former cast for a 2020 special, which offered a recreation of the season three episode “Hartsfield’s Landing” with frequent encouraging for viewers to vote in that year’s presidential election.
Were you a fan of The West Wing? What did you think of Rob Lowe’s performance throughout the run? Let us know!